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Freeway Face-Off
The term Freeway Face-off refers to a series of hockey games played between the National Hockey League's Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings, both of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The series takes its name from the massive freeway system in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, the home of both teams; one could travel from one team's arena to the other simply by traveling along Interstate 5. The term is akin to the Freeway Series which refers to meetings between the Los Angeles area baseball teams. History Along with the enmity shared between the city of Los Angeles and adjacent Orange County similar to baseball's Freeway Series, the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks share an on-ice rivalry due to sheer geographic proximity. The two teams are situated in the same metropolitan area, and share a television market. The rivalry started with the Ducks' inaugural season in , and has since continued. The Kings last made an appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals in , but have popped back into the playoff picture on five different seasons. The Ducks since their inauguration have made the playoffs seven times. As of 2009–10, the Kings and Ducks have never met in the playoffs, nor made the playoffs in the same year. Since 2003, the Ducks recent success in the playoffs, including the winning of the Stanley Cup in 2007 has bolstered Anaheim's fan base, at the same time the Kings' fan base still remains intact with loyal fans despite a recent lack of success. The Ducks also went to the Finals during their Cinderella run of 2003. During regular season (and, to some extent, pre-season) games, Kings fans arrive at the Honda Center in numbers for away games against the Ducks, and Ducks fans have done the same at Staples Center. Games between the Southern California crosstown-rivals are often very physical and fight-filled. The rivalry was showcased for the NHL premier in London at the start of the 2007–08 NHL season with two games between the teams. The rivalry was further heated during the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, which was hosted by the Kings in their home arena of Staples Center. When the Ducks took the stage to announce their 1st round, 12 overall pick, the audience predominantly consisting of Kings fans, let out boos. Prior to 2007, there was no official name for the regular season meetings between the Ducks and Kings, the "Freeway Face-off" name was chosen by a poll of 12,000 local hockey fans. Other names being considered were "Freeze-way Series" and "Ice-5 Series." http://ducks.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=469151, Ducks-Kings Rivalry: Freeway Face-Off. Common players Brothers Sean (ANA: 1995—98; LA: 1999) and Chris Pronger (ANA: 2006—09) Other players Several players have played for both teams, including: *Ken Baumgartner—Kings 1987–1990, 1993; Ducks 1995–1997 *Jim Thompson—Kings 1991–1992, 1993; Ducks 1993 *Lonnie Loach—Kings 1992–1993; Ducks 1994 *Warren Rychel—Kings 1992–1995; Ducks 1996–1998 *Doug Houda—Kings 1993–1994; Ducks 1998 *Bob Corkum—Ducks 1993–1996; Kings 1999–2001 *Stu Grimson—Ducks 1993–1995, 1998–2000; Kings 2000–2001 *Sean O'Donnell—Kings 1994–2000, 2008–2010; Ducks 2005–2008 *Dan Bylsma—Kings 1995–2000; Ducks 2000–2004 *Craig Johnson—Kings 1996–2003; Ducks 2003–2004 *Josh Green—Kings 1998–1999; Ducks 2008–present *Jason Blake—Kings 1998–2001; Ducks 2010–present *Ted Donato—Ducks 1999–2000; Kings 2002 *Mathieu Schneider—Kings 2000–2003; Ducks 2007–2008 *Ľubomír Višňovský—Kings 2000–2008; Ducks 2010–present *Kip Brennan—Kings 2001–2004; Ducks 2005–2006 *Kyle Calder—Kings 2007–2009; Ducks 2009–present The series Regular season results Postseason series As of 2010, the Ducks and the Kings have never met in the postseason. Because both teams are in the same division, they could theoretically meet in the Conference Quarter-finals, Conference Semi-finals, or Conference Finals, but could not meet in the Stanley Cup finals unlike MLB's Angels and Dodgers (another rivalry in the area) who can only meet in the championship round (the World Series). To date, the two teams have never made the playoffs in the same year. See also *National Hockey League rivalries References }} Category:Anaheim Ducks Category:Los Angeles Kings Category:National Hockey League rivalries